When a packet is sent beyond the borders of a local area network from one computing device to another, it travels over a wide area network (e.g., the Internet). The journey from the sending device to the receiving device requires switches and/or routers that store information regarding routes (i.e., the path or portions of the path) that the packet must be sent on to reach its destination (i.e., the receiving device). Information regarding the routes is stored in a routing table.